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Tuesday, March 31, 2015

"The Most Beautiful Thing we can experience is the mysterious........ "

Albert Einstein

"Tree of Life" Watercolour Ruth Hayes

Having always loved a good mystery must explain I think my total love of the creative process. The mystery occurs not so much in the how to's of painting but where the soul and heart and spirit of being human are stirred and moved and touched. The tools for me are colour, shape, texture and value but for a poet it could be the use of words or a dancer movement. How can a beautiful piece of music send the soul soaring? Looking at the colours in almost any Van Gogh will amaze and delight my eye as well as heart. A mystery is elusive and hard to describe but here I am trying to do so because it drives much of how I paint . As an artist I continually try to improve my skill but am aware that the excellence of a piece of work might have little to do with highly developed technique. This is why Art is available to all-no experience necessary. It is unconditional in its expression through any and all of us and and a mystery as to how it can speak to one but not another. It is universal but subjective, relative and absolute. Is it any wonder it has me captivated.

As another winter slowly shifts into Spring a number of my new pieces are trying to resolve their mystery enough to be finished for the Beach Studio tour coming up May 1,2 3. That might or might not happen. I can only hope. The weekend tour is always fun and I hope to see old friends and new.

"Song of Spring" Mixed Media by Ruth Hayes

Follow the Journey with this Video TutorialIntuitive Wet in Wet Painting From Start to Finish

Saturday, March 7, 2015

Perhaps it is a cliche to say that life is a journey but it is such an apt description. What is even scarier is that it often brings you back to where you started. Starting out upon graduating with my degree in fine arts I realized I needed to discover my own voice separated from the voices of the instructors that had filled my head for four years. Within a year however my arms, my heart and my mind were filled with the arrival of my first child. I was entranced and with it came a renewed burst of creative energy. Instead of life models in a studio I had this tiny perfect being inspiring me to sketch and paint her amazing little form. It wasn't what I had envisioned as being an artist but I committed to painting what was around me in my environment. The next few years brought a challenge to find time to paint as well as raise two children but they became subject matter for many paintings. My decision to paint what I loved opened doors, and galleries and opportunities for which I am grateful.
All artists must grow, and certainly my babies did. Time passed and I reached a point where I headed back to school to complete a master's degree in Expressive arts therapy. For me it was a journey that explored the great Mother, the dark Mother, the black Madonna and more. I went deeper and learned and grew. My painting changed. I changed. I felt I knew ART in a new way. I hold a deep reverence and awe for the power of art to heal to touch and bridge all the many realms of our human experience. I continued to paint, exploring abstraction, symbolism, myth, nature and whatever else. Years have passed and still someone will find me and inquire about a painting of a child on a beach they bought. Am I that artist? I live in Toronto on the Beach and participate in the Beach Studio tour and this Spring as a theme they have chosen Mother's Day as a focus because our tour takes place the week before. I smile, yes, I can do Mother, still do mother but not the sentimental aspect associated with the day set aside. Mother, that great creator in us all has been the inspiration of my life's journey.
May 1, 2, and 3 are the dates of the Beach Studio Tour this spring. It would be a pleasure to see you if you care to drop by.